Kesariya Stupa

The countdown to the three-day Kesariya Mahotsav from Friday has begun. So have preparations for the fest to be organised jointly by the state art, culture and youth affairs depart- ment and the district administration.

Besides performance of singers Malini Awasthi and Amitabh Kumar and dancer Parween Samrat, a national seminar on Lord Buddha and a Kavi Sammelan (poets’ conference) would be attractions of the festival. A heath camp would also be organised.

Performances by artistes from North-East Cultural Centre, Dimapur (Assam) and Kathmandu (Nepal), and a concert — Bihar Lok Gatha — by artistes of Natraj Kala Mandir, Patna, would add colour to the fest.

A detailed plan for the festival has been chalked out. Sukhda Pandey, the art, culture and youth affairs minister, along with urban development minister Prem Kumar, would inaugurate the mahotsav.

On the second day of the event, minister for sugarcane and minor irrigation resources Awadhesh Prasad Kushwaha would be present.

Tourism minister Sunil Kumar ‘Pintu’ and Motihari MP Radha Mohan Singh would be the main guests on the last day of the festival.

Kesariya MLA Sachindra Prasad Singh would conduct all the programmes throughout the festival, while Sheohar MP Rama Devi, her counterpart from Bettiah, Sanjay Jaiswal, and Rajya Sabha member Sabir Ali would be present as special invitees on the occasion.

Speaking about a review meet conducted for the mahotsav at Kesariya with Singh, East Champaran district magistrate Abhijit Sinha told The Telegraph that residents of the area had been urged to make the event a grand success by extending their full co-operation.

They have also been advised to attend the health camp at the fest. Singh said the district administration had left no stone unturned to make the festival a hit.

A few residents of the area started the Kesariya Mahotsav around 10 years ago. Four years back, the government took over the mantle. The state is trying to use the fest as a tool to boost tourism.